Chapter 1

Everyone said Liam Blackwood was absolutely obsessed with me.

Even after my mother and I were kicked out of our home, he still went through with our engagement.

He even rehearsed our perfect wedding ninety-nine times, all by himself, just for me.

They had no idea. The brides at those weddings? They were chosen by drawing lots from the ninety-nine kept women Liam Blackwood maintained.

“Ava, you’re already Mrs. Blackwood. It’s just a wedding for each of them. That’s not asking too much, right?”

I numbly took the large box of cash he handed me, then rushed to the hospital.

It wasn't until my own wedding, when he walked down the aisle with my father’s illegitimate daughter, that I finally couldn't hold back my tears.

“Anyone else, but why her?” I choked out.

A chilling smile played on Liam’s lips. “She’s carrying my child.”

“Ava, be generous. Don’t be like your mother. She got so old, and you still had to beg people for her medical bills.”

Under the mocking stares of every single guest, I clutched the money and fled in a panic.

But at the hospital entrance, I saw my mother plunge. Her blood splattered across my face, her eyes wide.

With her last breath, she rasped, “Ava Sterling, don’t ever beg him again.”